Customer question about some of our bigger, newer kits
Sunday, February 7, 2010 at 8:53AM
Dave

Hi everyone, this is Dave.  A customer asked me a question the other day that I thought I’d better address so everyone could see it.

On our STEEL and BRICK & MORTAR discs are some physically large kits, namely Big Steel and Akron Tool.  The instructions on the sheets say they should be printed on 8-1/2 x 14 cardstock.  Apparently folks are having trouble finding this size.  (Elsewhere we state that out kits are designed for 8-1/2 x 11, but these buildings are really big and we had to break our own rules to make them practical.)

If you can’t find 8-1/2 x 14 cardstock, you can make it by taking two sheets of 8-1/2 x 11 and taping them together.  What I do is use clear, packaging tape. (available in office supply stores)  Cut a piece about 12” long and place it on the back of one of the sheets, on the 8-1/2” edge so about half of it is exposed.  It helps to work on a surface that the tape can be easily removed from.  Flip this sheet over so the sticky side is up.  CAREFULLY, you get one shot at this, take a second sheet and aligning the two edges, press the second sheet onto the tape.  You really want the joint to be tight.  It might take a bit of practice, but it is not as hard as it sounds.  Trim the tape that is sticking out from the sides and you have an 8-1/2 x 22 sheet of cardstock.  (you don’t have to cut it down to 14”, your printer will automatically feed out the whole sheet)  Make sure to feed the paper into your printer with the tape on the non-printed side.  You may also have to provide a bit of support for the joint as the paper feeds.  You will be amazed that the joint disappears once printed.

This works so well, that I don’t even try to buy 8-1/2 x 14paper anymore.

Article originally appeared on Clever Models Paper Models for the 21st Century (http://clevermodels.com/).
See website for complete article licensing information.